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Hard work the only way out

SUNIL NARINE...should not have opened the bowling against New Zealand.

Former West Indies opener and top rated coach Bryan Davis says that the only way out for the West Indies in their current predicament is hard work. Davis was commenting after the West Indies were walloped in their limited overs match against New Zealand in New Zealand on Tuesday. West Indies were beaten by 159 runs after the match was reduced to 21 overs. The relative newcomer Corey Anderson blasted the fastest ever limited overs hundred off just 36 balls. Another New Zealand batsman Jesse Ryder also hit the sixth fastest ODI century. Davis said West Indies went into the match mentally un-prepared and it showed in the results. “I hear Dwayne Bravo saying that they were caught off-guard. What is he speaking about? Were they in the hotel room and someone just announced to them that they had a match to play? “They lost the game because as West Indians like to do, they were probably in the dressing room fooling around and skylarking. They were probably thinking that the game would not have been played and when they were told that it was going to be a 21-overs match, they then had no time to mentally adjust to match play. “They fielded first probably thinking they would get a run around because they probably had no warm-up time and it worked against them.”

Davis, who has coached spinner Sunil Narine at Queen’s Park, said he was against the move to open the bowling with him. “You have Ravi Rampaul who is one of your better bowlers in those conditions in any format and he should have opened the bowling with Jason Holder.” Davis noted that there was only one way out of the current situation: “Hard work is the way out of the current situation. I think the problem started before the tour to India, when they went to Orlando for a camp. I was told that this was important in team building and bonding and all that nonsense. “They actually left a camp in Barbados where they were playing cricket to go to a place with no cricket and go site seeing. This is foolishness. What they should have done is to stay in Barbados and play cricket. What they could have also done is to organise with the Indians to play some zonal teams. This would have been ideal preparations for them before that two-Test series.

“So we went into the series under-prepared and were hammered inside three days in both Tests and this would have killed off the confidence in the players. The selectors, then sent the same beaten team to New Zealand to play in totally opposite conditions and expected them to do well. There was no way that team was going to win matches in New Zealand. “What is required now is for the players to go back to the nets and work for long hours. I believe in playing a lot of cricket. I am one who still thinks that practice makes perfect. When you have long practice sessions, you gain confidence, stamina, mental toughness and bonding as well. What is needed is for the coach to take these men into the nets and let them bat and bowl for long hours and also praise them a lot. This is a major confidence thing, so this is what is required.” Davis continued :”However, I don’t know who will do it because I don’t think that coach Ottis Gibson can do it. Even the president of the WICB spoke of the value of the camp in Orlando. Listen here, a straight bat back in 1930, is still a straight bat, and they still have to use the same 22 yards to bowl. So what is the big idea with all this foolishness now?”